King Solomon and the Bee

A retelling of the traditional tale about a bee that repays King Solomon's kindness by helping him solve the Queen of Sheba's riddle

PreSchool-Grade 3-In this adaptation of the traditional legend, King Solomon is not only wise, but also able to talk to animals. After being stung on the nose, he summons all manner of insects to appear before him and demands to know who dared to attack him. A small bee confesses and begs forgiveness, promising to do the king a favor later. Solomon laughs, but the bee later helps him pass a test put to him by the Queen of Sheba. Renberg bases her version on a story in Hayyim Nahman Bialik's And It Came to Pass (Hebrew Publishing, 1938; o.p.), but notes that its origins are unclear. The text is smoothly written in a direct style. Heller's realistic illustrations, full of decorative floral and architectural detail, invite browsing. Their lush colors and the interesting page composition attract and hold interest. The result is an appealing picture book.
Jane Gardner Connor, South Carolina State Library, Columbia
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In Renberg's ( The Complete Family Guide to Jewish Holidays ) adaptation of a tale recorded by folklorist and storyteller Hayyam Nahman Bialik (1873-1934), a bee mistakes King Solomon's nose, with its "roselike fragrance and bananalike grace," for a flower and accidentally stings the royal schnoz. Solomon flies into a rage, but eventually pardons the abashed bee. Humming with gratitude, the bee eventually repays the king's mercy by helping him answer the Queen of Sheba's greatest riddle; unfortunately, while Renberg makes much of the queen's conundrums, she never explains just why it is so important for Solomon to solve them, and her narrative, accordingly, loses its oomph. Heller ( The Korean Cinderella ; Chickens Aren't the Only Ones ) populates her illustrations with beautifully delineated, jewel-toned flora and fauna as well as an assortment of bijoux bugs. Period costumes supply atmosphere, and the overall ambiance is indeed of a land of milk and honey. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

After King Solomon forgives a bee for stinging him, it returns the favor by identifying the one real flower among a roomful of artificial ones--one of the riddles set the great king by the queen of Sheba. As Renberg explains in an excellent note, this story has Talmudic roots but is based on ``The Bee'' by Jewish poet Hayyim Nahman Bialik (``since this account doesn't appear in the Talmud, scholars are unclear whether Bialik based it on some other ancient folklore or whether he invented it''). Renberg's simplified retelling is straightforward and lively, a good match for Heller's almost raucously colorful illustrations: Her statuesque, classically draped figures, set amid a riot of blossoms in the opulently appointed palace, are the stuff of legend. (Folklore/Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Ages 5-8. Renberg retells a traditional tale with roots in the Bible. King Solomon is visiting his garden when a small bee accidently stings his nose. Solomon is angry at first and then laughs when the bee says that someday he may be able to do him a favor. That day comes when the queen of Sheba arrives to test Solomon's vaunted wisdom with puzzles and riddles. The last test involves bouquets of artificial flowers--and one bunch that is real. Solomon is having trouble picking out the real flowers as the queen requests, until the bee flies directly to them. This simple story is fresh and appealing. The brightly colored pictures, accented with masses of flowers on every page, are occasionally stiff, but they do have child appeal. Kids will especially like the two-page spread that is crowded with insects flying around the pages. An author's note chronicles the interesting derivation of this story. Ilene Cooper